Monday, September 22, 2008
Dangers of Mobile Phones for Children
Children who use mobile phones are five times more likely to develop brain tumours than those who don't, according to research presented at a British conference.
Scientists have warned children to only use mobile phones in emergencies, after a Swedish study indicated that under-16s were more at risk of radiation from mobile phones because their brains and nervous systems wee still developing.
The research was reported at the first international conference on mobile phones and health in London.
Researchers said people who started mobile phone use before the age of 20 had more than a fivefold increase inglioma, a cancer of glial cells that support the central nervous system.
Young mobile phone users wee also five times more likely to develop acoustic neuroma, a benign tumour that can cause deafness, the study said.
Professor Lennart Hardell, of the University Hospital in Orebro, Sweden, said radiation from the phones penetrated deeper into children's brains because their heads wee smaller and skulls were thinner than adults'.
"We should be taking precautions," Professor Hardell said. He said teenagers should use hands-free devices and try to restrict themselves to texting.
The concerns over mobile phones stem from the radio frequency or electromagnetic radiation emitted when the phone sends or receives a signal.
Some scientists have expressed doubt about the new findings, saying it takes years for cancer to develop and mobile phone use is a relatively new phenomenon.
The World Health Organisation and the government-funded Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research both endorse the view that mobile phones do not cause ill-health.
Source: Tiffany Laurie
The Age
theage.com.au
